tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4738516321598278692.post5972030453820280181..comments2023-11-03T11:10:05.152+00:00Comments on JOST A MON: Second PersonFëanorhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17101113676992105240noreply@blogger.comBlogger7125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4738516321598278692.post-38533531546662587372008-04-04T21:59:00.000+01:002008-04-04T21:59:00.000+01:00Shefaly: I suspect it was the exam tension and not...Shefaly: I suspect it was the exam tension and not Juhi's cuteness that rendered you guys somnolent! Aamir Khan, I thought, was a popinjay in said flick :-) <BR/><BR/>Veena: The Curse of the Gypsy strikes young Bill, eh? Watch out, there's no cure for exposure to Ms Toma. ;-) It's been nigh on thirty years since I saw the film and now she rises from my subconscious like a sleeper cell.Fëanorhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/17101113676992105240noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4738516321598278692.post-79635530002172783822008-04-04T10:11:00.000+01:002008-04-04T10:11:00.000+01:00feanor: Was going to comment yesterday but then I ...feanor: Was going to comment yesterday but then I figured you needed atleast a full day to think fondly of Juhi.<BR/><BR/>varu is slightly more polite that va, but it is not tied to the formal you as they are in other languages. You can say that to anyone. <BR/><BR/>And yeah, he has stopped humming that song but he seems to have found more interesting stuff on this actress which he keeps informing me about. Also searched all of Westminster libraries and placed a reservation on a movie. Not looking good.Veenahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/06064708986711901612noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4738516321598278692.post-69532113161154985202008-04-04T06:38:00.000+01:002008-04-04T06:38:00.000+01:00Fëanor: Ai-yai-yo! Juhi Chawla? Tsk, tsk! There is...Fëanor: Ai-yai-yo! Juhi Chawla? Tsk, tsk! There is no accounting for boys and their preferences. <BR/><BR/>I remember seeing QSQT in the midst of my first semester exams in engineering and both my friend Reena and I slept through the film. Despite Amir Khan.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4738516321598278692.post-24786018050994165352008-04-03T09:14:00.000+01:002008-04-03T09:14:00.000+01:00Shefaly: thou speakest truly, my friend! The use o...<B>Shefaly</B>: thou speakest truly, my friend! The use of the informal 'tu' for God in Hindi has its analogues in European languages as well, signifying an intimacy with the divine, as you point out. <BR/><BR/>But I think English is a rarity in its 'egalitarian' second person, at least among the major tongues. Any ideas?<BR/><BR/>Re: the use of 'hum' to refer to oneself, this of course was raised to a heavenly adorability by Juhi Chawla in Qayamat Se Qayamat Tak. As someone said, had she used the singular first person, she would not have been half as cute (which is still very cute, heh). Excuse me while I think fondly of Juhi ;-)Fëanorhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/17101113676992105240noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4738516321598278692.post-349523695926742622008-04-03T07:14:00.000+01:002008-04-03T07:14:00.000+01:00Fëanor: Good post. I knew of the tu-toyer-vous-voy...Fëanor: Good post. I knew of the tu-toyer-vous-voyer and du-Sie distinctions but not of the analogues in Malayalam or Russian. <BR/><BR/>In Hindi, the status of 'tu' is a tad different from tu/ du in other languages. We use 'tu' not just for persons younger than us but also to show closeness (or apnaa-pan, if you will). <BR/><BR/>Friends often address each other as 'tu'. Small children address their mothers as 'tu' which suggest a very close relationship. Religious types also save it for 'bhagwan' (can you recall any bhajans that use 'aap'?) because they see that as the ultimate in intimacy. As a related aside, the word 'ishq' in Urdu refers to divine love and intimacy and it used to distinguish between ordinary, eartly 'muhabbat' from a devotion-like 'ishq'. This was to explain the previous note about God and 'tu' and otherwise not wholly relevant. :-)<BR/><BR/>As for 'aap' in the 'aap bade badmijaaz hain' type of usage, it is not very far from referring to oneself as 'hum'. The former implies formal respect - although as Veena points out it may not always be meant seriously (have you seen fathers giving their sons the third degree by asking 'janaab, aap kahaan thei?') - the latter implies humility, although the use of the Royal 'we' or 'one' (in third person) is just a weird way to distinguish one's own status.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4738516321598278692.post-85344072505729833122008-04-02T06:58:00.000+01:002008-04-02T06:58:00.000+01:00Good grief! Distant and Rebellious Malloos? First ...Good grief! <I>Distant</I> and <I>Rebellious</I> Malloos? First I have heard of it, heh. But you know, I thought <I>varu</I> was the polite form? My folks would have a synchronised heart attack if I said <I>vaa</I> to them.<BR/><BR/>Has Bill stopped humming that song? It's been ringing in my head since I saw that video too. Make it stop! Please make it stop!Fëanorhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/17101113676992105240noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4738516321598278692.post-10882398924095410152008-04-01T23:01:00.000+01:002008-04-01T23:01:00.000+01:00Rest assured the usage continues across Malluland ...Rest assured the usage continues across Malluland even in the new century. <BR/><BR/>When I was a kid, this used to confuse the hell out of me. I could never figure out why when someone came home I had to ask them "uncle kazhikunno?" I spoke Tam at home and my immediate instinct was to translate to Mallu what I would say in Tam but it didn't quite work that way.<BR/><BR/>There are many theories to why this is so - this old chap who taught me Mallu in ninth grade had an interesting one. His view was that Mallu is not a very respectful language as culturally, people do not like being unnecessarily respectful which is why they hardly use the formal you. For instance, in mallu, if you want to say "uncle come, lets eat", the "come" has no conjugated formal version. It is just "vaa"/"varu" as opposed to "vaanga" in Tam or "aayiye" in certain vague n indian languages.<BR/><BR/>Even when used, the word for you in Mallu doesn't sound respectful - it sounds like you are almost mocking the person. As opposed to the Tam you which sounds like you are all ready to be bound in servitude to this person forever and ever. I have seen this theory stretched to get to comic theories such as the correlation between the way the languages are spoken and the stereotypical culture of the speakers (i.e. the hospitable but sycophantic Tam vs. the distant and rebellious Mallu etc.)Unknownhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/13974629715070715564noreply@blogger.com